A GROWING CHURCH (1:1-2)

The letter follows the literary form that was common to letters of Paul’s day. A letter began with the name of the writer followed by a greeting and an expression of good wishes for the well being of the recipient. Then came some form of thanksgiving for benefits enjoyed. The information to be conveyed filled the main body of the letter followed by some form of personal greetings to conclude with.

Paul addresses his letter to “all of God’s people in Philippi”. This gives us the impression that the church had grown considerably since it began in the home of Lydia during Paul’s visit to Philippi during his second missionary journey. There may well be by now several house churches in Philippi in addition to the one Lydia’s home.

The members of the church are those “who believe in Jesus”. Paul wrote in a language ‘that was most widely known throughout all the nations … the Greek language, which, at the time when the Gospel began to be proclaimed among all the nations, was a thoroughly international language.’[1] The Greek word is ‘άγιοs’ (hagios)[2] sometimes translated ‘saints’. It refers to something sacred, something different. Paul uses the word to describe those who became Christians in Philippi. They are now a different people dedicated to the Lord and his service.

There are also elders and deacons in the church by now. They came to be given those names as the result of the roles they played in the life of the church. Martin[3] notes that “the terms refer to the inner life of the church as an organised fellowship … the words describe not the holders of ecclesiastical office but the responsibility which was assumed by certain Christians in the local church.”

Problems often emerge in a church that is growing in numbers. Paul prays that God’s grace and peace may be evident in the life of a church. Before reading any further in the letter it may be helpful to remember what it is that gives  … 

Evidence That God’s Grace And Peace Are Active Among The Members Of A Church   

God’s grace and peace are seen to be present in the life of a church when …

-    the gifts the Lord has promised have been identified and are being exercised by the members of the church.

   God has given us the ability to do certain things well. So if God has given you the ability to prophesy, speak out when you have faith that God is speaking through you. If your gift is that of serving others, serve them well. If you are a teacher, do a good job of teaching. If your gift is to encourage others, do it! If you have money, share it generously. If God has given you leadership ability, take the responsibility seriously. And if you have a gift for showing kindness to others, do it gladly.

   Don’t just pretend that you love others. Really love them. Hate what is wrong. Stand on the side of the good. Love each other with genuine affection, and take delight in honouring each other. Never be lazy in your work, but serve the Lord enthusiastically. (Romans 12:6-11)[4]

-    teaching and discussion is gracious. Like that presented by the Lord Jesus. Following his teaching in the synagogue in his home town of Nazareth, Luke describes the people’s reaction.

   He rolled up the scroll, handed it back to the attendant and sat down. Everyone in the synagogue stared at him intently. Then he said, “This Scripture has come true today before your very eyes.” All who were there spoke well of him and were amazed by the gracious words that fell from his lips. “How can this be?” they asked. “Is not this Joseph’s son?” Luke 4:20-22)

Paul reminded Timothy …

   The Lord’s servants must not quarrel but must be kind to everyone. They must be able to teach effectively and be patient with difficult people. They should gently teach those who oppose the truth. Perhaps God will change those people’s hearts and they will believe the truth. (1 Timothy 2:24-25)

-     members are there for each other when help of any kind is needed. Like Dorcas of the town of Joppa.

   There was a believer in Joppa named Tabitha (which in Greek is Dorcas). She was always doing kind things for others and helping the poor. (Acts 9:36)

And like Stephanas and his family, mentioned by Paul in another of his letters …

   Be on guard. Stand true to what you believe. Be courageous. Be strong. And everything you do  must be done with love.

   You know that Stephanas and his household were the first to become Christians in Greece, and they are spending their lives in service to other Christians. I urge you, dear brothers and sisters, to respect them fully and others like them who serve with such real devotion. (1 Corinthians 16:13-16)

-     members are peacemakers not troublemakers, as Paul reminds us …

For the Kingdom of God is not a matter of what we eat or drink, but of living a life of goodness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. If you serve Christ with this attitude, you will please God. And other people will approve of you too. So then let us aim for harmony in the church and try to build each other up. (Romans 14:17-19)[5]

It is also helpful to consider …

The Meaning Of The Words Grace And Peace

Barclay[6] makes this comment on the way Paul uses the words ‘grace and peace’ together. 

When Paul put together these two great words … he was doing something very wonderful. He was taking the normal greeting phrases of two great nations and moulding them into one. ‘Charis’ [χαριs] is the greeting with which all Greek letters began and ‘eirēnē’  [εὶρηνη] the greeting with which Jews met each other. Each of these words had its own flavour and each was deepened by the new meaning which Christianity poured into it.

Barclay tells us that “the Greek word charis [χαριs] is a lovely word; the basic ideas in it are joy and pleasure, brightness and beauty; it is in fact connected to the English word charm.”

Martin[7] explains how the meaning of the word has deepened in its Biblical use.

Grace is the free, spontaneous, unmerited love of God to sinful man, making its appearance in human experience and reaching its consummate expression in ‘the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.’ (Romans 3:24)

Barclay[8] writes, “Peace is never simply the absence of trouble. It means total well being, everything that makes for a man’s highest good.”

Digging further into its meaning we find that the word ‘εὶρηνη’ [eirēnē] ‘peace’ has in its components of meaning the idea of ‘well being’ and of ‘being undisturbed’. The word may be derived from ‘εìρω’ [eirō] meaning ‘to join’ or ‘to weave together’. We could describe a peaceful person this way. A person at peace is one in whom all the complex parts of the personality are held together by the Lord. The emotions, thoughts, desires, feelings, nervous system, and body functions are all in harmony with each other. The person is a well balanced person—at peace with God and himself.

We notice now that the church in Philippi is …

A CHURCH WITH A BALANCED PROGRAMME (1:3-5)

The members of the church are not just concerned with their own spiritual well being. This is important but always needs to be balanced by a concern for those outside the church. Paul refers to the members of the church as having been “my partners in spreading the good news.” (vs. 5) The church is concerned equally with caring for its own members and reaching out to those who have not yet heard the good news of salvation.

Partnership in spreading the good news involves first of all ‘fellowship’. The word Paul uses is ‘κοινωνοs’ [koinōnos] meaning ‘sharer’ or ‘partner’. The word derives from ‘κοινωνια’ [koinōnia] ‘fellowship, participation, sharing’. Being partners in spreading the Christian message also means sharing in the hard work involved (4:3) and helping financially (4:15-16). Such a partnership results in a sharing of God’s blessings (1:7). 

The church in Philippi is also …

A CHURCH UNDERGOING CHANGE (1:6)

A change is occurring in the lives of the members as they grow in their Christian faith. They are changing because the Lord is at work in their inner selves. They are changing as they allow the Lord to transform them into new people by changing the way they think. Paul reminds us of our need to be willing to change when he writes in another letter .. 

   And so, dear Christian friends, I plead with you to give your bodies to God. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind he will accept. When you think of what he has done for you, is this too much to ask? Don’t copy the behaviour and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will know what God wants you to do, and you will know how good and pleasing and perfect his will really is. (Romans 12:1-2

And now in this letter to the church members in Philippi, Paul writes of his confidence “that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finished on that day when Christ Jesus comes back again.” (vs. 6) Notice how the ongoing nature of the change is indicated in the words, ‘began’, ‘continue,’ and ‘finished.’ It has begun, it is continuing, and it will be completed.

It is a work God has begun in us. It is not yet completed. It is a work that is in process. But it will be completed at the time of the Lord’s return.

   What I am saying, dear brothers and sisters, is that flesh and blood cannot inherit the Kingdom of God. These perishable bodies of ours are not able to live forever.

   But let me tell you a wonderful secret God has revealed to us. Not all of us will die, but we will all be transformed. It will happen in a moment, in the blinking of an eye, when the last trumpet is blown. For when the trumpet sounds, the Christians who have died will be raised with transformed bodies. And then we who are living will be transformed so that we will never die. For our perishable earthly bodies must be transformed into heavenly bodies that will never die.

   When this happens—when our perishable earthly bodies have been transformed into heavenly bodies that will never die—then at last the Scriptures will come true:

‘Death is swallowed up in victory.[9]

O death where is your victory?

O death, where is your sting?[10]

   For sin is the sting that results in death, and the law gives sin its power. How we thank God, who gives us victory over sin and death through Jesus Christ our Lord! (1 Corinthians 15:50-58)

 John expresses this same confidence when he writes …

We are already God’s children, and we can’t even imagine what we will be like when Christ returns. But we do know that when he comes we will be like him, for we will see him as he really is. (1 John 3:2)

The church in Philippi is also …

A CHURCH MUCH PRAYED FOR (1:7-11)

Paul writes that the members of the church in Philippi “have a very special place in my heart.” (vs. 7) He does not forget the people who became Christians during his visit to their city. He assures them of his prayers. He is praying …

-   that their love for each other will keep on increasing—that it will be love built on knowledge and understanding (vs. 9)

-    that they will be able to discern the difference between the genuine and the false—the word Paul uses is ‘δοκιμαζω’ [dokimazō] ‘to test, analyse, examine, approve’. It is the word used to describe the testing of the purity of metals and coins. (vs. 10)

-    that they will be living lives of integrity in anticipation of the Lord’s return (vs. 10)    

Hendriksen[11] offers this summary of Paul’s prayer.

The prayer then, is that the Philippians, their faculties having been trained to prefer good to the evil, and the essential to the trivial (cf. Hebrews 5:14), may be pure and blameless with a view to the day of Christ.
 

A CHURCH WITH A GODLY MODEL TO COPY (1:12-26)

Paul felt that his life as an apostle provided an example for other believers to follow. He shared his experiences so that others may find encouragement in the Lord as he did. Later in his letter he writes,

Dear friends, pattern your lives after mine and learn from those who follow our example. For I have told you often before, and I say it again with tears on my eyes that there are many whose conduct shows that they are really enemies of the cross of Christ. (Philippians 3:17-18)[12]

As he writes of some of his experiences and what he has learned from them, Paul presents the church in Philippi with a model that is worth copying. We too may learn from him that …

-    adverse circumstances do not deter the spreading of the Gospel. They may in fact, as in Paul’s present situation, result in unexpected opportunities for passing on the Christian message. Chained wrist to wrist to members of the Praetorian Guard of Rome as they changed throughout the day and night, Paul seized the moment to share his faith with them. This is why he is able to say, “everything that has happened to me here has helped to spread the Good News.” (vs. 12)

-   the positive attitude of a person in difficult circumstances encourages others. This is what Paul  learned from his experience as a prisoner. “And because of my imprisonment many of the Christians have gained in confidence and become more bold in telling others about Christ.” (vs. 12-14)

-    it is better to be pleased that the Gospel is being preached than to become despondent when suspecting a wrong motive. Paul remained hopeful even as he noticed that while there were many who “preach about Christ with pure motives …others … preach with selfish ambition, not sincerely.” (vs. 15-17) He even speaks of his joy as he continues, “But whether or not their motives are pure, the fact remains that the Gospel is being preached, so I rejoice. And I will continue to rejoice.” (vs. 18) He finds joy in the proclamation of the message but not always in the messenger.

-    setting goals is always helpful. Paul’s goals in life were clear—he does not want to do anything of which he will be ashamed, he wants always to have the confidence to speak freely about Christ, he wants everything he does in life to honour the Lord.

For I live in eager expectation and hope that I will never do anything that causes me shame, but that I will always be bold for Christ, as I have been in the past, and that my life will always honour Christ, whether I live or die. (vs. 20)

-    it is good to be ready to die while at the same time being willing to live on. (vs. 21-26) Paul is not suicidal. But he is ready to die because his faith in Christ assures him of his place in heaven. He longs “to go and be with Christ.” (vs. 23) The word Paul uses here is ‘ὰναλμω’ [analuō] ‘to unloose for departure’. Barclay[13] tells us that it is the word used “for striking camp, loosening the tent ropes, pulling up the tent pins and moving on … for loosening the mooring ropes, pulling up anchor and setting sail.” Meyer[14] describes it as “the emergence of the spirit from the cramped, confined conditions of the first stage of its being into its true existence.” Paul is ready to die but is willing to live on while the Lord has work for him to do. Of his dying, he writes to the Philippians, “That would be far better for me, but it is better for you that I live.”

And finally in this first section of the letter we come to see that it is …

A CHURCH ENGAGED IN BATTLE (vs. 27-30)

What Is This Battle Paul Is Referring To? 

It is a fight for the Good News. Paul encourages Timothy with these words …

But you, Timothy, belong to God, so run from all these evil things, and follow what is right and good. Pursue a godly life, along with faith, love, perseverance, and gentleness. Fight the good fight for what we believe. Hold tightly to the eternal life that God has given you, which you have confessed so well before many witnesses. (1 Timothy 6:11-12).

It is a battle to present the truth of the Christian faith in the face of those who are fighting against the truth—those who Paul refers to later in his letter as “enemies of the cross of Christ.” (Philippians 3:18). It is a contest with the spiritual forces of the unseen world. Paul refers to this aspect of the fight in another of the letters he wrote while a prisoner in Rome.

For we are not fighting against people made of flesh and blood, but against the evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against those mighty powers of darkness who rule this world, and against wicked spirits in the heavenly realms. (Ephesians 6:12)
 

How Are We To Engage In This Contest? 

   (a) With the same commitment as athletes running a race. A word Paul uses in this part of his letter (vs. 27) is ‘συναθλεω’ [sunathleō] ‘to strive with, share a struggle, to compete as an athlete. Like athletes, Christians are called upon to put all their energy into the contest. We also need to throw off any excess baggage, as the writer of the letter to the Hebrews challenges us.

Let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily hinders our progress. And let us run with endurance the race that God has set before us. (Hebrews 12:1)

Another word Paul uses is ‘ὰγων’ [agōn] ‘a gathering, contest, struggle’. (vs. 30) The English word agony comes from this Greek word. In serving the Lord we are called on to keep on striving for victory, to agonize over those we are teaching about him.

   (b) As members of a team. This is what lies behind Paul’s comment that the Christians in Philippi “are standing side by side fighting together for the Good News.” (vs. 27) And again when he says, “We are in this fight together.” (vs. 30)

   (c) With an acceptance of the privileges and responsibilities that citizenship confers. When Paul says, “live in a manner worthy of the Good News about Christ, as citizens of heaven,” he is using the word ‘πολιτευω’ [politeuō] ‘to live as a citizen’. The English word politics comes from this Greek word. A noun form of the Greek verb is ‘πολιτεια’ [politeia] ‘a form of government, citizenship’. Paul has in mind the privileges and responsibilities of Roman citizens wherever they may be living. Martin[15] quotes Dibelius who explains that ‘πολιτεια’ [politeia] signifies “a colony of foreigners whose organisation reflects in miniature the ‘πολιτεια’ of the homeland.”

   With so many of the settlers in Philippi being citizens of Rome the word had great significance in its application to those who became Christians. Paul is saying that just as those who had migrated from Rome with all the privileges and responsibilities of Roman citizens are in a sense foreigners in Philippi, so we as Christians are foreigners on earth. We are but temporary residents here. We belong to another country. We are, as Paul writes, “citizens of heaven.” (vs. 27) We are pilgrims like Abraham, travelling by faith through this present world.

It was by faith that Abraham obeyed when God called him to leave home and go to another land that God would give him as his inheritance. He went without knowing where he was going. And even when he reached the land God had promised him, he lived there by faith—for he was like a foreigner, living in a tent. And so did Isaac and Jacob, to whom God gave the same promise. Abraham did this because he was confidently looking forward to a city with eternal foundations, a city designed and built by God. (Hebrews 11:8-10)

   As Christians we are citizens of heaven but the way we live here, the way we organise our Christian communities, should reflect that of our heavenly homeland.

   (d) Not in our own strength but trusting in the Lord. As the Lord reminded Zerubbabel as he looked at the enormous task of organising the rebuilding of the temple. Zechariah writes …

Then he said to me, “This is what the LORD says to Zerubbabel: It is not by force nor by strength, but by my Spirit, says the LORD Almighty. Nothing, not even a mighty mountain, will stand in Zerubbabel’s way. It will flatten out before him! Then Zerubbabel will set the final stone of the Temple in place, and the people will shout, ‘May God bless it! May God bless it!’ ” (Zechariah 4:6-7)[16]

   (e) Contending earnestly for the faith, but not contentiously.[17] As athletes competing in the games, Christians should remember to keep to the rules of the contest. Striving earnestly for the medal without being quarrelsome. As Paul advised the young pastor Timothy,

The Lord’s servants must not quarrel but be kind to everyone. They must be able to teach effectively and be patient with difficult people. They should gently teach those who oppose the truth. Perhaps God will change people’s, and they will believe the truth. (2 Timothy 2:24-25)

   (f) Exercising self discipline in pursuit of the goal. Paul reminds us …

Remember that in a race everyone runs, but only one person gets the prize. You also must run in such a way that you will win. All athletes practice self control. They do it to win a prize that will fade away, but we do it for an eternal prize. So I run straight to the goal with purpose in every step. I am not like a boxer who misses his punches. I discipline my body like an athlete, training it to do what it should. Otherwise, I fear that after preaching to others I myself might be disqualified. (1 Corinthians 9:-24-27)[18]

   (g) Not discouraged by the opposition. Paul tells his readers … 

Don’t be intimidated by your enemies. This will be a sign to them that they are going to be destroyed, but that you are going to be saved, even by God himself. (vs. 28)

   (h) Not put off by the distance to be run—the size of the task. Patience, endurance, and steadfastness is called for. The author of the Hebrew treatise leaves us with this challenge …

Do not throw away this confident trust in the Lord, no matter what happens. Remember the great reward it brings you! Patient endurance is what you need now, so you will continue to do God’s will. Then you will receive all that he has promised.

‘For in just a little while, the Coming One will come and not delay.

And a righteous person will live by faith.

But I will have no pleasure in anyone who turns away.’[19]

But we are not like those who turn their backs on God and seal their fate. We have faith that assures our salvation. (Hebrews 10:35-39)

Will Taking Part In The Battle Be Costly?

Yes! It may even result in wounding! Paul reminds the Philippians,

For you have been given not only the privilege of trusting in Christ, but also the privilege of suffering  for him. We are in this fight together. You have seen me suffer for him in the past, and you know that I am still in the midst of this great struggle. (vs. 29-30)

Wounding is to be expected, for as Paul reminds Timothy, “… everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution.” (2 Timothy 3:12). There is a purpose in it however for troubles are one of the factors the Lord uses in the transforming process. Paul explains …

And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them. For God knew his people in advance, and he chose them to become like his Son, so that his Son would be the firstborn, with many brothers and sisters. (Romans 8:28-29) 

No matter what the cost may be in taking part in the battle, the Lord is there to help us through. Paul leaves us with these encouraging words ...

All praise to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. He is the source of every mercy and the God who comforts us. He comforts us in all our troubles so that we can comfort others. When others are troubled, we will be able to give them the same comfort God has given us. You can be sure that the more we suffer for Christ, the more God will shower us with his comfort through Christ. So when we are weighed down with troubles, it is for your benefit and salvation! For when God comforts us, it is so that we in turn can be an encouragement to you. Then you can patiently endure the same things we suffer. We are confident that as you share in suffering, you will also share God’s comfort. (2 Corinthians 1:3-7).